Page 41 of Headstrong Cowboy
“Same could be said for you.”
Ryder canted his head in acknowledgement.“True.”He didn’t elaborate.He didn’t need to.Sunny knew he and Chrissy had something going on.She’d know why he was at their place in the early hours of the morning.
“She’s going to be tired for her event,” Sunny murmured, a hint of censure in her tone.
Ryder wasn’t offended.Sunny was just looking out for her sister, like Chrissy had said they often did.“Maybe.”Deciding to redirect the subject off of him and Chrissy and what they’d been up to, he came over to where Sunny stood, noting the four plants in pots in front of her.“What are you working on?”
Sunny reached out to the closest pot and stroked her finger down the leaf with reverence.“I found these on a cart, piled with other items at a nursery in Bozeman.All of them were going to be thrown out.I recognized the leaf as a being a rose, so I scooped them up.When I walked to the checkout, the cashier asked me three times if I was sure I wanted to buy plants that were practically dead.I assured her I did.”
“What’s so special about them that made you want to save them?”Ryder was intrigued.He would’ve ignored the plants had he seen them, but not Sunny.She’d gone out of her way to get them.
“There’s nothing special, per se.I’m pretty sure all four of them are Alabaster roses.They’re a pure white rose with a light lilac scent.They last well indoors and have a thornless stem, which makes them perfect for bouquets and other arrangements.”
“How did you bring them back to life?”The passion with which Sunny spoke about the flowers wasn’t surprising.He’d seen the way she doted on the plants as if they were her own children—which he supposed they were.
“A combination of things.Water, of course.I added some nutrients to the new pots I transferred them to.I didn’t want to use the soil they were in as it could’ve been contaminated, which was causing them to die.”
Ryder nodded, like he knew what she was talking about.“I hope they continue to grow.”
Sunny looked up at him, a serene, confident smile on her face.“Oh, they will.And when these get growing, I’ll be able to use them as either a mother or father plant to cross-pollinate with and come up with a new variety of rose for the farm.”She stopped stroking the plant.“If I get the chance.”
The last bit was spoken softly, almost whispered to the plant, but Ryder was close enough to her that he’d heard it.
How much was he taking away from this family by buying the property?The other question was how much was he giving them by buying it?It wasn’t as if he was doing any of this without a reason.The contents of the lost letter from his mother had set him on this path.Even though she’d made the choice to leave him alone, he wanted to do something to anchor himself to his heritage.It may not make sense to other people, but it made sense to him.
“I’m sure they’ll be amazing,” he said as he took a step back.“I should go.Will I see you in a few hours at the rodeo?”
“Wouldn’t miss it.Chrissy riding is a sight to behold.”
Having seen her at Riley’s family’s ranch, Ryder could do nothing but agree.“I know.”
He slipped out the door and left Sunny to her plants.Tiredness swamped him and he thought about sleeping in his truck—wouldn’t be the first time he’d done it—but decided against it.His injured thigh wouldn’t appreciate being cramped that way, even for a few hours.
Giving the farm one last look, he climbed into his truck and drove away.He shouldn’t feel any responsibility toward the family who were likely going to lose their livelihood, but he did, and it wasn’t because of his growing feelings for Chrissy.Hearing the way Sunny talked about her plants.The way she touched the flowers.Everything about that place was ingrained in her, and he was going to take it away.
“Stop it.Eunice is the one that is going to sell.It’s not like you’ve come in and made her an offer because you saw the land and want it.It’s free will, not coercion.”
It didn’t matter if he had blood ties to the land.Or he said the words out loud a hundred times.The guilt was burrowing in and it wasn’t a feeling he enjoyed.
*
The next morning,Ryder woke to an email from Lucinda, stating she’d received a call the previous evening from Eunice Bloom.The Bloom Flower Farm was officially on the market, and she had the signed listing agreement in her hand.Did she want him to draw up an offer for the property?They’d discussed the amount he was willing to spend in their previous conversations, and what Eunice wanted for the property was well within his price range.
Ryder stared at his phone, not sure if he was dreaming or it really was true.Everything he felt from his late-night encounter with Sunny came roaring back to life.It wasn’t often Ryder was selfish.In fact, he generally went out of his way to be very accommodating.But there was more to his need and desire for this piece of land.
Could he be selfish now?
Could he phone Lucinda now and tell her to go ahead?
Could he take Chrissy’s family legacy the same way his family legacy had once been taken from them?
They were questions he didn’t have the answers to.The Bloom property was a fulfilment of a wish of his mother’s.It didn’t matter the circumstances of how that wish came about, only that he had the ability to make it come true.It wouldn’t bring his mom back.It wouldn’t bring any of the Munro family back.Even if this was the only parcel of Munro family land he owned, then so be it.He’d gotten some of it back.
But doing so would hurt Chrissy and her family.He should regret getting involved with her, but he didn’t.How could he when she made everything in his life seem brighter?
I should’ve told her about my connection to the land.I should’ve stopped making excuses and just done it.But would I have lost her if I had?
Dammit.There were so many things he should’ve done, but he hadn’t.And that was on him and he needed to own it.The motivation for everything he’d done was to fulfill his own dream, as well as his mother’s.The dream of owning his own ranch had been with him for so long.
